Iron Man 2 Nearly Featured Ant-Man 2’s Villain

Marvel Studios nearly introduced Ant-Man and the Wasp‘s villain Ghost in Iron Man 2. The third film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe expanded the story of Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) by pitting Iron Man against two villains. Ivan Vanko aka Whiplash (Mickey Rourke) was the primary villain of Iron Man 2, while Justin Hammer (Sam Rockwell) serviced Whiplash’s rise. However, there was an iteration of the sequel that would’ve made Ghost part of the MCU much earlier.

The MCU brought the character of Ghost to life in 2018’s Ant-Man and the Wasp. Reimagined as Ava Starr, actress Hannah John-Kamen played the quantum-powered villain Ant-Man (Paul Rudd) and Wasp (Evangeline Lilly) faced. Ghost’s origin in the MCU is tied to an experiment with the Quantum Realm gone wrong. A quantum explosion killed her parents but made her entangled in quantum energy. Ghost became more of a sympathetic villain as Ant-Man and the Wasp progressed and left her close to anti-hero status.

There was a time when Ghost was set to join the MCU long before Ant-Man 2 was close to happening. Early versions of Iron Man 2‘s story had Ghost be one of the villains. The information comes from The Story of Marvel Studios: The Making of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, which detailed the development process of the MCU’s first sequel. Ghost’s near appearance in Iron Man 2 was tied to Justin Hammer and the weapon inventor’s original role that included creating multiple supporting villains. This included Whiplash, as Iron Man 2 kept, and the idea for Ghost to be another Hammer creation. Ultimately, Ghost was left out of Iron Man 2‘s villain lineup.

It might seem strange to MCU fans that Ant-Man and the Wasp‘s villain was previously considered for Iron Man 2, but Ghost is better known as an Iron Man villain in the comics. The character started a feud with Tony Stark after Iron Man caught him doing criminal activities. This evolved into Ghost working for Justin Hammer and then joining the Thunderbolts. Unlike the Quantum Realm-powered version of Ghost the MCU delivered, Iron Man 2‘s Ghost surely would’ve stayed true to the comics and made the character’s invisibility and intangibility powers come from an advanced technological suit.

Although Ghost didn’t appear in Iron Man 2, the character’s MCU future seems to be brighter because of it. Ghost probably would’ve been a disposable early Iron Man villain. Ant-Man 2 brought a fresh take to Ghost’s story and powers, but it also left her story open for the MCU to continue. Ghost can now appear in future MCU projects, whether that be Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania or as a member of the Dark Avengers or Thunderbolts. An Iron Man 2 role for Ghost likely wouldn’t give the character as promising of an MCU future.

About The Author

Cooper Hood
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Cooper Hood is a news and feature writer for Screen Rant. He joined Screen Rant in late 2016 following a year-long stint with MCU Exchange, which came after first developing an MCU blog of his own. He graduated college in 2016 with a Bachelor’s degree in Media & Public Communication, with a minor in Media Production. Cooper’s love for movies began by watching Toy Story and Lion King on repeat as a child, but it wasn’t until The Avengers that he took an invested interest in movies and the filmmaking process, leading him to discover the world of film journalism. Every year Cooper looks forward to seeing the latest blockbusters from the likes of Marvel, DC, and Star Wars, but also loves the rush to catch up on Oscar films near the end of the year. When he isn’t writing about or watching new releases, Cooper is a fantasy football obsessive and looking to expand his Blu-Ray collection – because physical media is still king! Follow Cooper on Twitter @MovieCooper.

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